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Timeless love story ‘La Boheme’ shows opera’s ‘sunrise’

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Also by Miri Joo:

School of Ecology exhibit explores fabrics of time (November 7, 2007)

by Miri Joo

Monday, November 12, 2007

Opera fans must have been pleased to see a man holding a picket sign "Need 2 tickets TONIGHT" in front of the Overture Center on Friday night, when even college town-themed events often have trouble filling a quarter of their seats (see: Madison Pop Fest). "La Boheme," in contrast, returned to the Madison Opera Nov. 9 and 11 for two sold-out performances.

This was Madison Opera's fourth production of "La Boheme" since 1963, for good reason. "La Boheme" is one of the most beloved and performed operas around the world. From old movies to Baz Luhrmann's "Boheme on Broadway" to "Rent" to "The Simpsons," pop culture has unusually embraced the operatic culture of "La Boheme."

"This popular appeal comes from the fact that each of us can find a bit of ourselves in 'La Boheme,'" said Allan E. Naplan, Madison Opera's general director. "Unlike operas about gods, royal families or historic icons, Puccini's masterpiece tells a simple and universal story of young love."

This universal love, centering on 19th-century young bohemians, was wonderfully characterized by the Opera's young cast, including Lauren Skuce, Dinyar Vania, Susanna Phillips and Luis Ledesma. Maestro Hal France returned two seasons after the Madison Opera's "The Magic Flute" to lead the stellar cast, the Madison Opera Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra and members of the Madison Youth Choirs. By the second act, there were more than 90 singers and players on stage.

Despite some opening night jitters, the acting and singing reached Broadway-caliber heights in the later acts. Act 2's highlight came at Musetta, played by Susanna Phillips, giving new life to "Quando me'n o soletta per la via" ("When I go out alone in the street"), the opera's signature waltz. Her ostentatious dress was as dazzling as her voice when she regained her former lover Marcello's attention. A professor of musicology, Charles Dill said, "Musetta's waltz stole the show. Not only was it sung beautifully, but the actress really took the opportunity to show us the character in-depth."

In the third act, the audience held its breath when the curtain rose. The set, borrowed from the Canadian Opera Company, enchantingly depicted a gloomy winter scene. At a toll gate on the snowy outskirts of Paris, a quartet was dramatically staged. As Mimi, Lauren Skuce exuded the 19th-century ideal of delicate femininity, and Dinyar Vania's Rodolfo counterpoint was bold and provocative. The Marcello, Luis Ledesma, helped the weary couple Mimi and Rodolfo reconcile, and the audience fell in love with Marcello's sincerity and gaiety. In entering midquarrel with Musetta, Mimi and Rodolfo recalled their happiness. The two couples together sang the quartet, "Addio dolce svegliare alla mattina!" ("Goodbye, sweet awakening in the morning!"). The voices climactically blended the two main plot threads.

Madison Opera's production showed the timeless quality of "La Boheme." The suffering of young artists and lost love is hardly a new idea, but one that has been successfully recast for each generation, because the sentiment speaks to something all experience. The Madison Opera's traditional interpretation of "La Boheme" reminded us that an old telling can be just as immediate as the sing-song rock of "Rent." As Mimi and Rodolfo allude to in their final words, the opera ends in sunrise, anticipating our eternal need for an old story in the new day.

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